2_St. Louis Rams1

Pittsburgh Steelers Gameday HQ

NFC WEST
ST. LOUIS
2014 STRENGTHS:
• Offensive line, defensive line, coaching
Rams Offense
Sam Bradford is on the IR after retearing his left ACL, so
offensive production will fall on the shoulders of Shaun Hill.
Hill has thrown just 16 passes since 2010 when he coverd for
injured Matthew Stafford as the Detroit Lions starting QB.
Zac Stacy is the running back people know only because
he carries the ball more than all the other runners combined,
though does so at less than four yards per carry.
Tavon Austin is the next great hope on a receiving corps
that normally takes other teams’ discards and tries to make
something out of them. With this type of typical game plan,
the Rams have not had a winning season since 2003. But
if any head coach can take a talent-deprived, chemistrydepleted
team back to the playoffs, it is third-year Rams head
coach Jeff Fisher, who once transformed Tennessee from an
8-8/7-9 franchise their first five years together into a six-time
playoff team in his last dozen years there, garnering 10-to-13
2014 WEAKNESSES:
• Conservative play-calling, non-threatening
offense, lack of continuity
RAMS
wins six times.
If he is indeed building
something in St. Louis, it is
an ever-improving O-line.
The Rams’ offensive
line ranked 12th while
running and 14th when
passing in 2013, giving St.
Louis’ skilled positioned
players belief that a
foundation is indeed
in place. Now if only
some of these prospects
started delivering on their
potential. Bradford (26
years old), Stacy (23) and
Austin (23) are making
doubters out of most. One
thing the experts don’t
worry much about is the
offensive line, where the
left side is manned by
four-time Pro Bowl left
tackle Jake Long and No.
DILIP VISHWANAT/GETTY IMAGES SPORT
two pick in the 2014 NFL Draft Greg Robinson, and the right
side is controlled well by Joe Barksdale and Rodger Saffold. The
house may look boring, but at least the foundation is solid.
Offensive Player to Watch
Watch Jake Long. If he is healthy, it is tough to find a
better left tackle in the game. In 2013, he wasn’t healthy. He
was still Pro Bowl material, just not All-Pro left tackle like he
was in 2010. That’s what happens when you play through a
recovering ACL/MCL injury, as he did in 2013. For insurance,
the Rams made left guard Greg Robinson the No. 2 pick in the
2014 NFL Draft, ready to move the rookie over should Long
need to ever rest and recover. If Long is healthy and Robinson,
an All-American left tackle at Auburn, quickly learns his new
position, St. Louis will have one heckuva left side to run on.
Which, of course, will lead to better numbers than last year
(4.11 yards-per-carry on the left end and 4.14 around left
tackle—ranking 11th in the NFL in both categories).
Robert Quinn